Category: Immigration

Today the North Dakota Republican Party released a new digital ad calling out Heidi Heitkamp for dismissing the issue of dangerous sanctuary cities as a “scare tactic.”

Combatting illegal immigration is a top priority for North Dakotans, especially cracking down on dangerous sanctuary cities; but on this issue, Heidi Heitkamp has a long record of failing to fight for North Dakota’s values. Heitkamp votedthreetimes against defunding these dangerous sanctuary cities that put our citizens and law enforcement officers at risk. And when confronted with her record of failure, Heitkamp dismissed talk of sanctuary cities as a “scare tactic.”

“By repeatedly supporting sanctuary cities and failing to combat illegal immigration, Heitkamp has let North Dakotans down and failed to represent their interests during her time in the Senate,” said North Dakota Republican Party Communications Director Jake Wilkins. “Senator Heitkamp should talk with the families and victims terrorized by criminal illegal immigrants before attempting to dismiss this issue as a Republican ‘scare tactic.’ North Dakotans deserve a Senator like Kevin Cramer who will fight to protect our citizens and uphold the rule of law.”

Heitkamp supported an amendment that gave permanent residence for illegal immigrants without funding a border wall.

Heitkamp votedthreetimes against cracking down on dangerous sanctuary cities that put our citizens and law enforcement officers at risk.

Now that she’s trying to rewrite history with this election year spin, it’s clear the only person Heidi Heitkamp has “always worked for” is herself.

“With the election just around the corner, Heidi Heitkamp is frantically trying to rewrite her liberal, out-of-touch voting record,” said North Dakota Communications Director Jake Wilkins. “By repeatedly supporting sanctuary cities and failing to combat illegal immigration, Heitkamp has let North Dakotans down and failed to represent their interests during her time in the Senate.”

Despite Heidi Heitkamp’s record that shows otherwise, combatting illegal immigration is a top issue for North Dakota voters.

Look no further than the Editorial Board of the Grand Forks Herald, which writes, “Immigrants who come to the U.S. through the proper channels and who follow our laws should be welcomed. We have work for them, and they should be able to live here in peace as part of our communities. Those who do not come here legally should be turned away. Illegal immigration is a great problem in the United States, and efforts should be made to slow the tide of people entering the country illegally.” The editorial continues saying bluntly, “It’s about laws, and laws should not be ignored.”

Senator Heitkamp needs to answer for her persistent unwillingness to combat illegal immigration, having voted three times to support illegal sanctuary cities. When confronted with her record of failure, Heidi Heitkamp dismissed the issue as a “scare tactic.”

She’s wrong.

Heitkamp should talk with the families and victims terrorized by criminal illegal immigrants before attempting to dismiss this issue as just a Republican scare tactic.

An illegal alien is accused of abducting and killing Mollie Tibbets, the young Iowa woman who was missing for weeks before her body was found Tuesday, Aug. 21, in a cornfield. The suspect, 24-year-old Cristhian Rivera, is an undocumented immigrant from Mexico.

Get ready, because illegal immigration is about to reignite as a hot issue, especially with the midterm elections fewer than three months away.

Actually, it’s OK to question the influx of illegal immigrants in the United States. Perhaps it shouldn’t be ratcheted up after a single, sad murder because no matter what happens, there will always be some — although hopefully far fewer — illegal aliens in the U.S. However, if there was more control of illegal immigration, there is some likelihood that Tibbets would still be alive.

It’s important to note that some studies show illegal immigrants commit fewer crimes per-capita than native-born citizens. As reported earlier this summer in the Washington Post, one study — conducted by the Cato Institute — examined conviction data from 2015 in Texas. The study concluded that “as a percentage of their respective populations, there were 56 percent fewer criminal convictions of illegal immigrants than of native-born Americans in Texas in 2015.” The Post also reported another study determined states with larger shares of illegal immigrants tended to have lower crime rates than states with smaller shares from 1990 to 2014.

Take those conclusions with a grain of salt, because some believe the Post has lost its objectivity regarding conservatism and President Trump, who seeks immigration reform.

Studies noted, we return to the point: Tibbetts might be alive today with better immigration laws.

In our view, the president was elected in large part due to national frustration that little has been done about an obvious immigration problem. Some estimates show there are more than 10 million people — more than the population of New York City — living illegally in the United States, costing U.S. taxpayers approximately $8,000 apiece. Although these figures are debated to death by experts on both sides of the issue, estimates show the impact of illegal immigrants to Americans is between $60 billion and $116 billion annually.

Some say illegal immigrants fill a void and work at jobs that otherwise would go unfilled. Some say they are a boon to the economy.

Perhaps. Yet they still are here illegally, siphoning away tax dollars, and they just shouldn’t be.

It’s about laws, and laws should not be ignored.

A merit-based immigration system similar to Canada’s should be the goal for the United States. In the wake of the Tibbetts murder, Congress should take advantage of this heightened concern to consider a Canadian-style immigration reform.

This isn’t racist. Immigrants who come to the U.S. through the proper channels and who follow our laws should be welcomed. We have work for them, and they should be able to live here in peace as part of our communities. Those who do not come here legally should be turned away.

Illegal immigration is a great problem in the United States, and efforts should be made to slow the tide of people entering the country illegally.

In the ad, Cramer says, “It’s hard to understand why Heidi Heitkamp, who is a former attorney general, voted to fund sanctuary cities that ignore the rule of law and put our citizens and law enforcement officers at risk.”

Heitkamp’s failure to crack down on sanctuary cities and protect North Dakotans- votingthreetimesto support sanctuary cities- is one of her many failures on illegal immigration. Heitkamp also votedagainst border security and criticizedPresident Trump’s plan to build a wall, saying “I just wish we could get beyond that.”

In 2016, she fervently supported Hillary Clinton, who made opposing Trump’s border wall a centerpiece of her campaign.

Just last year, Heitkamp criticized President Trump’s plan to build this wall, saying “I just wish we could get beyond that.”

With a disastrously weak record on immigration, including consistent support for funding sanctuary cities, North Dakotans aren’t buying Heitkamp’s campaign reincarnation as a border security hawk.

“Heidi Heitkamp has spent her time in Washington opposing a border wall and efforts to combat illegal immigration,” said North Dakota Republican Party Communications Director Jake Wilkins. “North Dakotans support combating illegal immigration and they know Heidi Heitkamp does not.”

Heitkamp has consistently refused to crack down on sanctuary cities, voting three times to continue their funding.

“Heidi Heitkamp firmly opposes President Trump and his administration’s efforts to combat illegal immigration,” said North Dakota Republican Party Communications Director Jake Wilkins. “With her inexcusably weak record of failing to secure our borders and refusing to crack down on sanctuary cities, North Dakota voters are ready to reject her in November.”